The Week in Preview: Fall constellation Camelopardalis has no real Greco-Roman mythology, as it wasn’t discovered until the 17th century.

Week in Preview

Tuesday

Eyes on the sky

With the changes in the foliage so obvious and dramatic, it can be easy to forget that the heavens also change with the seasons. Get acquainted with the autumn constellations at the New Hampshire Astronomical Society’s fall skywatch at 7:30 p.m. at the Amherst Town Library at 14 Main St. in Amherst.

Society members will have several telescopes set up and will be more than happy to give you a close-up look at the first-quarter moon and seasonal constellations like Perseus, Cassiopeia and Andromeda.

If you’d like to learn more about the stars, stop by the Johnson Meeting Room at 7 p.m. for an introduction to astronomy by Ed Ting. We hear he’s a stellar instructor.

The event is free and open to the public. Rain date is Oct. 6. Register by calling 673-2288, e-mailing library@amherst.lib.nh.us or visiting www.amherst.lib.nh.us and selecting Calendar of Events.

Wednesday

Reap and keep

After working so hard for your harvest, you are now attempting to eat the entire contents of your garden before it spoils.

Learn to preserve your produce without sacrificing its nutritional value at the Nashua Garden Club’s October meeting, “Gardening for Health,” from 7-9 p.m. at First Baptist Church at 121 Manchester St. in Nashua.

Michelle Provencher, a certified nutritional counselor, will discuss how best to preserve and store your vegetables and herbs so that their nutrients remain intact as well as the numerous health benefits associated with homegrown produce. She will also cover basic nutritional concepts and share recipes designed to maximize your garden’s bounty.

This program is open to the public. Admission is free for club members, $5 for nonmembers. For more information, visit www.nashuagardenclub.org.

Friday-Sunday

Paint the town orange

No one fetes the state fruit quite like Milford. Celebrate all things orange and squashy at the Milford Pumpkin Festival from Friday through Sunday at the Milford Oval.

Festival highlights include a fireworks show Friday at 7:45 p.m., a street party and beer tasting Saturday from 5:30-8:30 p.m. and target practice by the American Chunker pumpkin cannon Sunday from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Trombly Farm at 150 N. River Road.

There will also be live music, plenty of food vendors, a haunted trail, fun and games for the kids, a talent show, a craft fair, a pumpkin pie contest ... you know, you should really just come and experience it all for yourself.

The festival and related events will take place Friday, 5-9:30 p.m.; Saturday, 8 a.m.-9:30 p.m.; and Sunday, 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m. For more information, including a schedule of events, visit www.milfordpumpkinfestival.org, or call 672-4567.

Sunday

Astronomical damage

We wonder if the company that insured the red 1980 Chevy Malibu coupe of Michelle Knapp of Peekskill, N.Y., offered a “falling celestial objects” clause. It would’ve been worth the expense today in 1992, when Knapp’s car was struck by the Peekskill meteorite.

The Peekskill meteorite was unique in that it was witnessed by thousands of people, many of whom took pictures or captured the event on video. There are no fewer than 16 different videos of the meteorite’s descent.

The meteorite was first spotted over Kentucky and traveled more than 435 miles (which took a mere 40 seconds) before landing. It flew apart into more than 70 pieces, resulting in a sonic boom.

One of these pieces (weighing in at just over 27 pounds) struck the left rear corner of Knapp’s car, which was parked in her driveway.

Police initially construed the incident as criminal mischief. Further investigation of the scene by the fire department, which was called when it was discovered that the car’s gas tank was punctured, turned up the meteorite chunk that caused the damage.

Knapp’s insurance company, it turned out, needn’t have worried about how to file a claim for such an incident. Knapp never had the car repaired, opting instead to give it to R.A. Langheinrich Meteorites, which has exhibited it around the world and continues to make the car available for display in museums and similar institutions.

The Week in Preview (written by Teresa Santoski) could make a serviceable telescope if you rolled it up, but only for viewing nearby objects. Know of an event worthy of filling this space? Call 594-6467 or e-mail tsantoski@nashuatelegraph.com. Information should be submitted at least two weeks prior to the event. Follow TWiP, Tete-a-tete and Teresa’s general ramblings at twitter.com/TeresaSantoski.